Abby’s Guide > Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) > Discussions > What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions |
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Steve_Cebu
Joined: Dec 17, 2009
Points: 888
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Re: What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Reply #31 Jan 15, 2011 3:24 pm |
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>>>Drive safe, drive smart. Drive back to New Jersy. +1
"If you have more miles on your snow blower than your car, you live in New England." "If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching, you live in New England."
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jrtrebor
Location: Michigan - 3 hours north of Chicago on the lake
Joined: Feb 10, 2010
Points: 539
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Re: What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Reply #33 Jan 16, 2011 11:28 pm |
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I would say that the biggest advantage of the hydro drives. Is that under any conditions you can match your forward speed to your blower through put capacity. That fact that you can slow the forward speed down to a little more than a creep under certain conditions. Is a real plus in my opinion. I've noticed with my re-powered 1032 Arien. That I need a little slower forward speed or a little higher through put under maximum snow load conditions. That would be a full 32" cut with a snow depth to the top of the bucket. The engine doesn't bog and only drops about 3 to 400 rpm. But I sometimes have to pause for maybe 2 seconds for the blower to clear part of it's load. That is the beauty of the hydro trans. If I had one I could back it down just a little and keep the blower at max through put without over loading it. Matching your forward speed to the snow load is how you achieve maximum snow clearing performance for any blower. If you move to fast for the load. You lose rpm and everything slows down. Forward motion and blower through put.
This message was modified Jan 17, 2011 by jrtrebor
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trouts2
Location: Marlboro MA
Joined: Dec 8, 2007
Points: 1328
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Re: What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Reply #35 Jan 17, 2011 8:12 am |
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I'd second everything jrtrebor said above in post 33. As I get more clearing time and familiar with the Honda hydro the more I like it. Slowing way down in tough going is easy with the hydro compared to friction drive. With the hydro your hands are free to do a little bucket wiggling or lifting and lowering. With friction drive and slipping the clutch it's harder to manage the slowed rate while jiggle the machine at the same time. The rate changes. That's ok for a short pile or small areas where the going is tough but for a long run of tough going the managing of the drive clutch becomes a hassle. For a small clearing area it's not so much a big deal but for a big area and constantly haveing to manage the clutch in big snow the hydro makes it easy. It's easier to the drive rate for a slight plowing of the bucket. Changing speeds is easier. For many area these advantages are not so great. The tough areas are not so many and the number of times of big snows few. The number of wet snows is also a factor. The hydro seem very robust and like it could take quite a bit of hard yearly use. I've talked with a few owners, Honda dealers and service mechanics and they all have the same report that the hydro is well made and stands up over the years. That also may not be much of a factor for many. Friction disk last a long time when used right. I've picked up several of the hydro tracks and a few very beat up from always using bucket forward. The buckets were ground off a full half in all around the bottom section of the bucket with metal in the back pealed. Big abuse but hydro fine and also the track components seem unworn. The hydro would seem to be a nice feature and worth the extra cost for bigger areas and commercial use. For a smaller area and with someone who is no so concerned about the price compared to a decent friction drive machine a hydro would be ok.
This message was modified Jan 17, 2011 by trouts2
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tkrotchko
Location: Maryland
Joined: Feb 9, 2010
Points: 143
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Re: What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Reply #39 Jan 17, 2011 9:39 am |
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Not sure if the same can be done with friction disc, but with hydro, I can change drive speed and direction on the fly without releasing the drive lever. Convenient at times when you need to rock it out of a rut. I've used an MTD track for 13 years and I just got my Honda tracked about a month ago, but I've never encountered a time with tracks that you need to rock it out of a rut. Worst case when I ended up in a ditch, the machines are always set up to simply balance the thing backwards and let it climb its way out. I was just moving all my OPE and cars around in my outdoor workshop and the ground had about an inch of snow (I've not used the Honda yet) and I realized the Honda in snow turns effortlessly. No joke, no exaggeration. I'm a small guy so I'm not muscling the thing around, its just easy to turn. And I don't think its any worse than the MTD because the MTD sat "flat" on the tracks, meaning even with the trigger drive, that thing would not allow you to slip it on the ground. By contrast the tracks on the Honda are raised in the center meaning there's a high spot where its pivoting on a 1/2" inch piece of rubber, so as long as I keep it going, I can spin it 180 degrees. And with the hydro drive, as I come to tight turns, I don't have to stop, I simply slow it down let it spin on the tracks a bit and go. Nice. I am looking forward to 30" of snow now. And in thinking about how people keep saying the Honda track drives are hard to maneuver, I finally realized its a matter of perspective. *I've only ever used a track drive*, the first year I struggled because I had to keep stopping to steer it, move it slide it, and after a while tracks become second nature. Tracks might take a homeowner 2-3 years to really get accustomed to how to use them.
This message was modified Jan 17, 2011 by tkrotchko
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